Zhang Xiaotian did not continue his performance because Popovich replaced him.

There is no suspense about the outcome of the game, it depends on the team's satisfaction with the performance of those people.

Zhang Xiaotian played exactly ten minutes, which was not long but not short, and there were seven people who played less time than him.

Tyler Wickelson, who is also a striker, only got three minutes of performance in the final garbage time, and he looked like he was already lucky.

In the following training, there was an increase in group confrontation, mainly young players and fringe players.

Zhang Xiaotian was only assigned to a group with Leonard once, and the rest of the time he defended each other, he didn't have any complaints, as long as he could stay in the team, even if he was a sparring partner.

Because only by staying in the team can he have the opportunity to show himself in the NBA and gain recognition.

On the 10th, the Spurs faced the Hawks, and the team arranged a GDP truce, making it clear that it was a further investigation of the players.

Corey Joseph gets a start, along with Eddie Curry and Derrick Brown.

Zhang Xiaotian doesn't have to think about starting the game, the Spurs still have to hone Leonard, and the other two positions in the starting line are Leonard and Danny Green.

The Hawks are also scouting players, but star Josh Smith and Al Horford are still starting together.

The Spurs' starting lineup is clearly to let Leonard be the core, but the preseason is not summer league after all, and Leonard's lack of offensive means is exposed, and the team opened the game with a 12-2 play.

Popovich saw Leonard's performance with a serious face, and he couldn't see what he was thinking.

Leonard was also expressionless, and he didn't know if he had been hit.

As soon as the rotation time came, Popovich replaced Leonard, and this time it was Stephen Jackson who came on first, even if his performance in training was not satisfactory, but after all, this old fritter with an annual salary of tens of millions of dollars, how to figure out how much skill he still has and how much he can contribute to the team in the regular season.

At the back, Nando De Colo was the first to get his chance.

Not to mention Parker's hometown, he was also selected by the Spurs before, and he has been training in Europe, and this time he is recruited, the team must have more expectations for him than Zhang Xiaotian.

Then there's Gary Neal, also an undrafted player who has been with the Spurs for two years, and this is a contract year, and the Spurs will need to judge his value as well.

Then there are the interior players, Zhang Xiaotian belongs to the second batch of players who were investigated, and finally got the opportunity to play in the middle of the second quarter.

When he was on the court, the Hawks had Kyle Korver come up and try his hand.

The Hawks obviously didn't let a few of the main players rest directly like the Spurs, they just disrupted the order of play, so Zhang Xiaotian met the opponent's starting No. 3 position.

This shooter-type player says that it is good to defend and easy to defend, as long as you pay attention to their shots, it is not easy to defend and not easy to defend, as long as one is not careful, the opponent may hit.

In the summer league, Zhang Xiaotian's defense of Adam Morrison was not so smooth at the beginning, not to mention Korver, who had completely established himself in the league.

Zhang Xiaotian knew that the Spurs cared most about his defense, and after he went up, he stuck to Korver, constantly seeking physical confrontation, and he didn't think about the help defense and others, and he didn't even look at where the ball was, just followed Korver.

Korver didn't expect the Spurs' small bench to be so difficult and desperate, he originally wanted to try the offensive methods that he strengthened in the summer, but he hit the iron several times, and finally relied on the cover of his teammates to catch the ball and hit a three-pointer.

When he was substituted, Zhang Xiaotian obviously felt the consumption of physical strength.

He didn't know what his performance would look like in the eyes of the coach, but he did his best.

At halftime, Leonard seemed to be in a little low mood, Zhang Xiaotian wanted to go over to comfort him, but the other party didn't want to speak, so he had to stand by silently and listen to the slightly serious speech of head coach Popovich.

At the start of the second half, Leonard was substituted after only one cut, and there was finally a trace of resentment on his face.

Stephen Jackson is worthy of the old fritters, who usually don't see much in training, and he and Gary Neal hit back-to-back shots in the third quarter to show their offensive ability.

However, their defense and air are not much different, the two teams take the lead each other, and the scene is very good, but Popovich is not satisfied, this is not the Spurs' basketball, so Zhang Xiaotian got a chance at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

In fact, the Spurs only have Leonard and Stephen Jackson in the current No. 3 position, and among the players who have not received guaranteed contracts, he, Wesley Witherspoon, Derrick Brown, and Tyler Wichelson are all No. 3 players, which shows that the Spurs need at least one No. 3 player.

Zhang Xiaotian clenched his fists, and he definitely had to seize the opportunity.

The Hawks now have Jeff Teague playing with a group of rookies, focusing on two rookie interior linemen, Keith Benson and Mike Scott, and Zhang Xiaotian's opponent is John Jenkins, who has met in the summer league.

Zhang Xiaotian locked up John Jenkins on the court, but it didn't help the Spurs' defense very much, and with Jeff Teague feeding the ball, the Hawks played well on both interior lines, and their lead tended to expand.

The current guard of the Spurs is Nando De Colo, who is also eager to perform, but fortunately, European players are not playing as only American players, and after Zhang Xiaotian ran out of position, the ball still passed.

Facing John Jenkins who came over, Zhang Xiaotian jumped up directly and hit the other party.

John Jenkins' face suddenly turned unpleasant, and the little substitute in the summer league actually provoked him.

When it was time for the Eagles to attack, he tried hard to run and demand, but Zhang Xiaotian followed him to death, and the ball still didn't reach him after two laps.

The Hawks shot iron, Zhang Xiaotian turned around and accepted the rebound with extreme acuity, and in John Jenkins's surprised eyes, an acceleration was erased.

Outside the three-point line, he hit a three-point shot, 83:83, and the two sides were tied.

However, at this time, Nando De Colo did not pass the ball to Zhang Xiaotian, it is estimated that he felt the pressure on him, and the opponent either did it alone, or passed the ball to the inside, and Zhang Xiaotian had no choice.

Pre-season is when the players are scouted, and the coach doesn't ask the players how to play at all.

Halfway through the fourth quarter, Keith Benson hit two inside shots to put the Hawks up by one point.

The team asked for a timeout, and Zhang Xiaotian's biggest concern at this time was that Popovich would replace him.

Fortunately, the old man just replaced all the players on the court with new faces, Zhang Xiaotian and Nando De Colo both stayed on the court, and the Eagles also replaced Jeff Teague, and the outcome of this game will be decided by the rookie.